A Time of Yearning
by Nobaru
Summary: OneShot. Yaoi. SasuNaru. Confronted with questions, Sasuke responds in a way Naruto didn't expect.


Disclaimer: I own nothing. I make no profit. All rights belong to their respective owners.

"U-zu-ma-ki Na-ru-to!" Naruto said aloud as he signed the last of a large stack of papers with a flourish, dropping his pen on the desk with a relieved sigh when he was done. Being the Hokage was a lot more paperwork and a lot less action than he'd originally thought it would be. But he wouldn't give it up for the world.

"Moron."

Naruto jumped, startled by the unexpected sound of Sasuke's voice. He turned with a frown at the nickname, only to see a small wrapped parcel hurtling towards him. This was where Naruto was supposed to show off his amazing ninja reflexes that had earned him the title of Hokage, by snatching the parcel out of the air with one hand and little to no effort. Instead, he fumbled, swiping for and missing the parcel, only to have it smack him right in the face.

"If that had been a kunai, you'd be dead." Sasuke told him, shutting the window behind him from where he'd snuck in.

"If it had been a kunai, I would have caught it." Naruto grumbled back, rubbing his nose where he'd been hit. "You bastard, do you have to attack me every time I let my guard down?" He whined.

"Yes." Sasuke replied simply, ignoring Naruto's dark scowl in response. He idly waved at the parcel he'd thrown, currently laying in Naruto's lap. "Happy birthday, dobe."

Naruto blinked at Sasuke, looking down at the parcel in his lap with an air of surprise. His expression melded from annoyed to ecstatic in a split second. Beaming, Naruto eagerly tore away the plain blue paper, ripping open the box lid with the vigour and excitement of a small child.

Upon seeing what was inside the box, Naruto's eyes widened. He gently lifted the old forehead protector from amongst the tissue paper, casting Sasuke a questioning look. It was the same protector Sasuke had worn during their fight at the Valley of the end; the one where Naruto had made the scratch running through the engraved Konoha leaf symbol.

"I thought you might like it." Sasuke muttered, his gaze averted as though he suddenly found the far wall extremely interesting.

Naruto nodded, running a finger over the deep scratch. "Thank you." He said softly. He wondered if Sasuke even realised how precious he thought this gift truly was.

Lurching to his feet, Naruto placed the protector on the mantelpiece among the many photographs of him and his friends. He paused to admire the one Sakura had given to him earlier as a birthday present; the most recent one taken of the newly reformed Team 7.

Yamato and Kakashi stood at the back, smiling like proud parents. Sai stood to the right of the frame with an awkward smile on his face. (He still couldn't smile properly, but at least it was better than the creepy fake one he always used to do). His arms were wrapped possessively around Sakura, his head resting on her shoulder. Sakura was leaning back against Sai, her hand resting on his arm, clearly showing off her golden wedding band. Her other hand was curled into a fist from where she had smacked Naruto on the head a few moments previous for being annoying.

Naruto knelt in the middle of the photo, (he'd been knocked to the ground from the force of Sakura's punch), a wide grin on his face despite the tears of pain in his eyes, making a 'V' sign at the camera. Sasuke stood beside him, his face pale and drawn with fatigue. Despite that, he wore the characteristic Uchiha smirk, looking proud and haughty as normal.

The photo had been taken shortly after Sasuke had agreed to a deal with the Hokage's council. They would allow him to remain in Konoha as a regular citizen as long as he earnt it, by completing tasks set for him by the council. Unfortunately, even Naruto wasn't privy to the details of the tasks; Sasuke avoided the subject like the plague. All he knew was Sasuke often returned from his missions exhausted, and usually wounded.

Naruto eyed the man now, taking in the dark circles forming under his eyes, his waxy pallor and the various silvery scars that darted over his skin. He frowned, noticing Sasuke had lost even more weight. Before, he'd had a svelte physique that gave him a kind of elegant beauty. Now his bony shape and slightly hollowed cheeks gave him an almost skeletal look.

"Have the council given you another mission?" Naruto asked, breaking the silence.

Sasuke glanced at him, expression going wary. "No, not yet."

"Sasuke-" Naruto began, taking a step towards him.

Sasuke pushed off the wall, his black hair flashing blue as it was hit by the sunlight. "Don't." He warned, sounding angry.

"Why?" Naruto snapped, already losing his temper. "I want to know what the council are making you do! Why exactly you end up plagued by nightmares every night."

Sasuke looked surprised and Naruto guiltily glanced away. Since Sasuke had returned, Naruto had been living with him under the pretence of keeping him company. In truth, it was to keep an eye on him. Their rooms were next door to each other and Naruto was often woken in the middle of the night by Sasuke's screams. Of course, he always pretended he'd heard nothing the next morning when they ate breakfast together.

"Every ninja has nightmares." Sasuke said, his voice deceptively soft.

"Only those that feel guilty over what they've done." Naruto shot back. "Only that would give you constant nightmares."

There was a moment of tense silence. Sasuke's face was dark with anger. 'Good', Naruto thought. If he could get him angry enough, maybe Sasuke would finally open up and tell him what exactly was going on with him.

Sasuke moved and Naruto flinched, fully expecting the man to attack him. Instead, Sasuke shook his head, retreating a step. "I don't want to talk about it."

Ignoring Naruto's protests, he flung open the window and leapt out onto the roof.

"Oi!" Naruto exclaimed, hurrying after him. It probably wasn't the wisest thing to do; Sasuke was known to become violent when pushed too far. But, damn it, he was tired of watching the man suffer in silence. Besides, when had Naruto ever been known to do the smart thing?

Naruto chased him over the roof tops of the village, ending up at the old training grounds where they had passed Kakashi's test on teamwork and first officially became Team 7.

"Sasuke..." Naruto cajoled when Sasuke eventually came to a halt.

He yelped in surprise when Sasuke suddenly seized his arm, spinning him around before roughly shoving him back against the nearest tree trunk.

"Bastard..." Naruto growled.

"Stop following me." Sasuke demanded, the threat in his voice enough to make Naruto suppress a shudder.

"Not until you talk to me!" Naruto snapped back, stubborn.

Sasuke snarled, slamming his fist against the tree right beside his head. Naruto swallowed hard. Maybe following Sasuke had been a mistake after all.

"Why do you care so much?" Sasuke growled. He was close enough that Naruto had to look up to meet his gaze; a fact that kind of pissed the blonde off. "You're constantly chasing after me, hounding me, butting into my life and are an ongoing nuisance. It drives me insane knowing you're right there, and I can't even-!"

Sasuke abruptly cut himself off, turning his head away with a frown. A glimmer of fear passed over his face. Naruto stared, his pulse racing. Sasuke was afraid?

"Because I'm your friend." Naruto told him, attempting to be reassuring. 'Your brother', he thought, but held his tongue. He didn't think mentioning brothers would be a wise move with the current mood Sasuke was in.

Sasuke smirked with a cold and distant expression that Naruto hated. "Friend, huh?" He whispered, looking back at Naruto.

Naruto's heart leapt into his throat. Sasuke's eyes, black as sin, shimmered with an intense heat that sent an unexpected sensation curling in the pit of Naruto's stomach.

For a tense three heartbeats, they stood there, completely focused on one another. Then, slowly, Sasuke leant forward, his lips brushing just shy of Naruto's skin as he whispered into his ear. "You are so criminally naive, dobe."

Naruto suppressed a shiver as Sasuke's warm breath ghosted over his skin. As if sensing it, Sasuke's grip tightened on his arm, lowering his head until his forehead touched Naruto's shoulder. His face was angled so his breath continued to caress Naruto's neck.

"Uh, Sasuke?"

Sasuke stiffened, as though only just realising his actions. Naruto closed his eyes as Sasuke pulled away, silently questioning the pang of loss he felt at the lack of Sasuke's warmth against him.

The light touch of Sasuke's lips on his own took him completely by surprise, his eyes snapping open as he froze, mind blank from shock.

Noticing the lack of violent response, Sasuke moaned, pressing Naruto back against the tree as his kiss became more aggressive. Naruto gasped, the initial thoughts of pushing Sasuke away vanishing as the kiss sent a pulsing sensation of heat through his body, setting him alight.

Sasuke took the chance to slip his tongue into Naruto's mouth, running the tip along the edge of his teeth to give Naruto a teasing taste, before drawing it back, leaving Naruto yearning for more.

Sasuke broke their kiss, trailing his mouth along the line of Naruto's jaw before dropping to the base of his neck.

"Oh, God, Sasuke..." Naruto moaned, his hands shifting to fist Sasuke's hair as he proceeded to lick, bite and suck on Naruto's pulse, certain to leave a mark.

Sasuke's hands drifted down, gliding over Naruto's back before slipping under his shirt to trace his fingers over the bare skin.

Naruto's breath came fast and he held it, feeling dizzy. He didn't know what to do. This was too much, way too soon. "Sa-Sasuke, wait."

Sasuke's hands went still. He pulled away with an abruptness that left Naruto cold. Panting, Naruto leant back against the tree, a hand covering his throbbing pulse.

Sasuke watched him from a few feet away, his eyes still burning with dark desire. "Don't come after me again, Naruto." He said, his voice heavy with an unfufilled lust. "I can't hold back anymore. It'll be all or nothing."

Naruto's pulse was hammering as a smirk spread over Sasuke's face. "Happy birthday, dobe." He shifted into motion and Naruto was left staring at the empty training grounds.

His knees wobbled, and Naruto slid to the ground before they gave out fom under him, trying to remember how to think. This was going to make things rather awkward between him and Sasuke in the future. He rose a hand to his mouth, the feeling of Sasuke's lips against his own still resonating through him.

'I can't hold back anymore.'

Naruto quirked a smile. Or things were going to get a hell of a lot more interesting.

* * *

A/N: I may or may not do a sequal to this... I think I should do the next chapters for certain other stories first! XD Anyway this was for SasuNaruSasu-Love groups contest on deviantart for Naruto's birthday! Hope you enjoy it! (I certainly enjoyed writing it!) :3


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